Color management question

[Virginia]

Hello,
I'm not sure if this is the correct area to ask this question, but since it is the "if it doesn't fit elsewhere" catagory, I guess I can't go too wrong :D .
I am just starting to do some portraits for other people and I live near a Costco and do most of my printing there (great job for reasonable price :D ). Online they offer a color profile. So far what I have recieved in print has been pretty close to what I see on my monitor, but I was thinking it might be even truer if I tried their color profile.
I'm new to color management. I used the Adobe Gamma that came with my PSE2 and then PSE3, I didn't notice much of a before and after difference with my home HP printer. They were pretty close.
So, if I understand the idea of color management, it is to get what you see on the screen to be as close as possible to your output (this is benificial for obvious reasons :) ). Is that roughly correct?
So, if I usually out put with Costco prints, then I'll be more likely to know what they will look like if I use their color profile, true?
Then comes the trying to figure out how to take the profile they provide and put it in the right place on my computer. Ahhh, another learning opportunity, oh goody :wink: ha ha ha!
Well thanks again for listening (well, reading). I just wanted to touch bases with those that know more than I, before I open a new can of warms :lol: .
Best Wishes,
Virginia

[Carbone]

You are correct, Colour Management is to make sure that what you see is as close as possible to what you get.

What kind of computer do you have and what operating system does it use ? That'll help us help you with colour management profiles.

One piece of advice, though, if you already have pleasing results, I would suggest you keep the setup you have and don't change a thing. The quest for the perfect colour has made more than one mad :)

With colour management, you have a profile for your screen (Adobe Gamma helped you created or adjust one), then comes the profile for the type of paper you have (for printing). There's also the profile of the pictures from your camera. If you have a Digital SLR, for example a Canon 10D, some websites will offer colour profiles adjusted thightly to this camera for various conditions (flash, no flash, inside, sunset, etc.). If you have regular digital camera, you probably have the choice of Adobe RGB or sRGB (it depends on the manufacturer).

I'm not an expert at colour management, so I hope a better experienced person jumps in to further help you.


Ray

[Virginia]

Thanks Ray,
I am using a HP Pavillion a620n running Windows XP operating system. I am shooting with a Minolta Dimage A1 and am using the AdobeRGB, I also have a small, keep with me practically all the time Sony Cybershot P100, I'm not sure what color profile it uses. On my computer the two cameras produce very similar photo's.
I'd say I'm 90% happy with the results I'm currently getting on my prints. Sometimes, I get them back and they are darker than I thought they would be, and then the next batch is fine. I'm not sure if the varience is in me or them.
I hear ya about getting too worried about perfect color management could be a short road to the looney assylum!
I hadn't thought about it much until I saw that they offered a color profile and when I started doing work for other people, my motivation to be able to predict how it would turn out increased. On the other hand, it is wise not to fix something that really isn't broken :) !
I sure appreciate you chatting about it.
Hope you have a pleasant day (or evening),
Virginia

[aandres]

Interesting discussion.

While this likely won't help Virginia directly (sorry), I think this document will help any Canon printer users out there.

http://homepage.mac.com/renard/ls/Canon_ICC_Profile_Guide.pdf